Guests are being told to arrive at 5:30 p.m., although the president isn’t expected to arrive and speak until later in the evening.

Tickets had started at $100, but the cheap seats are long gone; all that remained Friday were preferred-seating tickets for $1,000 each and premium-seating tickets for $2,500 each. The photo reception, for which a ticket cost $7,500, has sold out too.

The president is holding a much more exclusive fundraising dinner, also at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium; contributors are paying $20,000 each to sample food prepared by celebrity chefs Alice Waters and Tyler Florence. Among those expected to attend is San Francisco 49ers quarterback Alex Smith; guests will have their pictures taken with the president and John Legend.